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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. march — music
  4. row — a line
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. march — the month
  8. row — to paddle
  9. wind — moving air
  10. rule — a law
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. sharp — clever
  13. stock — shares
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. stock — goods
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. march — the month
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. content — happy

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com